Fragrance Like This
by Nymphadora1196
Summary: There would never be incense like this; nor would there ever be a fragrance so sweet. No one would ever know what it felt like, and no one will ever know how much I loved you." AU one-sided HitsuHina.


Summary: "There would never be incense like this; nor would there ever be a fragrance so sweet. No one would ever know what it felt like, and no one will ever know how much I loved you." What would happen if you took the relationships between Hitsugaya and Hinamori, and then flipped it? AU one-sided HitsuHina.

* * *

DISCLAIMER: I do not, in any way, shape, or form, own the characters from Bleach. However, I do proclaim my rights to the ideas in this story.

I originally wrote this in Chinese and then translated it into English, so, huge hanks to my betas, especially QianYun, for correcting all the typos and wrong verb tenses and awkward wording and **most of all**, curing Hitsugaya of his OOC syndrome.

Okay, just a bit of cultural words and things that you should know before reading, however, feel free to skip to the next divisor if you're familiar with the stuff that's here.

Hanamachi: A **hanamachi** (花街) is a Japanese courtesan and geisha district. The word's literal meaning is "flower town". Such districts would contain various _okiya_ (geisha houses).

Gion: **Gion** (祇園) is a district of Kyoto, Japan, originally developed in the Middle Ages. It eventually evolved to become one of the most exclusive and well-known geisha districts in all of Japan

Okiya: An **okiya** (置屋, _**okiya**_) is the lodging house a maiko or geisha lives in during the length of her nenki, or contract or career as a geisha.

Mother/Okaa-san :The proprietress of the okiya is called _okaa-san_ (the Japanese word for "mother"). In this story, the proprietress is called Mother to differentiate between Hinamori's okaa-san and Mother of the okiya.

Imperial Entrance Exams: exams taken by men to obtain positions at court.

Carriage: a sedan chair.

* * *

I lived with my father on the bank of the river by the Gion of Kyoto. Father owned some land, and he had allotted some for me to grow flowers. I would rise early every morning and pick some to sell in the hanamachi, the flower-town of the Gion.

The hanamachi teemed with geisha and their apprentice maiko, dressed fabulously in eye-catching and expensive kimonos. No one paid heed to the shabby girl selling flowers; no one noticed me.

Kurosaki Karin was the best geisha in the most renowned okiya in the hanamachi. She was also my number one customer. One day, her rickshaw passed by me and my basketful of jasmine flowers and, for some reason, she told the driver to turn around and come back to me.

"It smells so sweet," she had sighed, "but it won't last long after being picked."

I smiled at her. "No, but if I hadn't picked them and brought them here, no one would know how beautiful they are. I grew them in my garden; it seems a shame to let them wither away with only me enjoying their fragrance and beauty instead of sharing them with the world."

Her face lit up and those painted red lips curved into a smile, mirroring my own, but far more radiant and breath-taking. Her voice was quiet but musical when she spoke. "You're very likeable and bright, you know? I'm going to buy these flowers. From now on, you can bring some every other day to my okiya. Mother will be pleased and she will pay you for them."

So I would stand near the bridge to sell flowers for the day, and then bring Karin flowers the next. Sometimes, when she didn't have an appointment, she would let me stay for a chat.

We started to get to know each other, and I was surprised to find her so extremely likeable, for beneath that tranquil and graceful mask was someone with much spirit and vitality.

* * *

I stood by the bridge, selling my flowers. It was getting late, and there weren't many left in my basket; most likely nobody would buy them. I decided to call it a day. I took out a ribbon that was tucked into my obi, stuck a leftover jasmine around one of my pigtails, and prepared to go home.

As I turned around I saw _him_ crossing the bridge. He was dressed plainly in a simple black kimono. What set him apart from the rest of the crowd was his distinct snowy hair and teal eyes. They were very unusual, as was the slight frown on his face. He reminded me of a dragon fallen to the confines of the earth. I had seen many men come and go in the Gion, the young and old, the wealthy and poor, the plain and the handsome, and they all passed by me like smoke and golden dust, inconsequential and superfluous.

He was different. I had never seen someone like him.

He wanted to buy flowers. I picked out the best ones and asked him whom they were for, even when I didn't need to ask to know the recipient of this gift – only Karin was fit to have an admirer such as him.

I was right. He paid me generously and took all the flowers. I smiled and only accepted what the flowers were worth.

"So cheap?" He sounded surprised.

I looked at my shoes, feeling a blush begin to creep up my cheeks.

"They're only flowers," I said carefully as I kept my gaze on the ground, "and there aren't many left."

For a moment he was still, considering. Then I heard the rustle of cloth as he turned away. I let go of the breath I didn't know I had been holding. When I raised my eyes from my shoes, I found myself staring into his strange teal eyes. He extended his hand, one of the jasmine blossoms held carefully in his fingers.

"Keep this one," he said, extending it further, "you'll need it for your other braid."

What would Karin think if she heard him? Would she care, with her easygoing attitude? I kept my thoughts to myself and stared at the flower in his fingers, my throat suddenly dry. My hand moved on its own accord as it touched the stem of the flower, my cold fingers careful not to touch the blossom or the skin of his finger. He released the flower, slipping his hand into the folds of his kimono as he bid me goodnight and walked away. I didn't know how to explain the smile that found its way onto my lips as I touched the soft petal of the jasmine I just wrapped into my hair.

I watched him go until he was nothing more than a memory.

* * *

From that day on, I saw him often. Mostly I saw him at the teahouse near the bridge where I continued to sell my flowers. I stopped bringing flowers to Karin's okiya, and although I was grateful that she didn't say anything, I couldn't help but miss her company.

One day, he approached me at dusk and asked me to bring flowers to Karin's okiya for her every day. He offered to pay me as much money as I asked for. I was terrified. I didn't want to refuse him anything but I could not do this. He seemed to mistake my fear for hesitance because he added another thing to his request. He wanted me to tell her they were from Hitsugaya. My mind had wondered what his name was; it had come up with a million odd possibilities, but I doubted one could suit him more.

"Thank you for your kind offer," I replied, praying my voice to be smooth, "but I cannot do as you wish." I saw his lips part and spoke quickly, "Jasmine flowers may be delicate and quick to wither, but they will still be beautiful for a few days after being picked. Bringing flowers every day would be a waste, Hitsugaya-san."

His eyes narrowed slightly; he obviously did not like to be chastised and I inwardly kicked myself for my boldness.

"Your money may not mean a lot to you, but I have grown these flowers myself. I know how much it takes to make a seed into this," I said, sweeping my hand to the blossoms as an example, "even ordinary flowers need care and time to grow, jasmine needs it more."

For a moment, he seemed to consider my words. I waited, wondering what he would do. My hand fisted inside the fabric of my kimono, fingers crossing as I prayed he would not be offended by my words. His face broke into a smile finally, one that showed in his eyes far more than it did on his lips, and the crease between his eyebrows lessened. I hoped he was not laughing at me. My hurt must have shown in my face because he stopped laughing.

"Your words seem to have a deeper meaning, Hinamori-san," he said, "comparing yourself to the jasmine flower, it is fitting."

I felt my blush deepen and my cheeks grow hot. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to find a hole to hide in somewhere.

"Please don't mock me," I said, and my eyes hit the ground once more. "I-I just care about the flowers I grow."

"Hanamachi," he said, after a moment, "it's called the flower town, but I always thought that there was only one person in it that could be considered a flower; the rest were just weeds," my eyes rose hesitantly, "it seems you've shown me that there are two people in here as beautiful as the blossoms you carry."

* * *

As autumn approached, the air was scented with the crispness of falling leaves. There weren't many flowers still blooming in the garden. Chrysanthemums grew in the fall, but people only buy exotic ones grown in pots or bonsai arrangements. I'm not particularly fond of them anyways; the ones I have are plain and ordinary. They don't sell well, so I've picked them already. They are being dried for flower tea. I couldn't help but think of how Karin would reproach me for treating flowers in such a fashion.

With no flowers to sell, I stopped going to the hanamachi and stayed at home to help father with the harvest, as well as picking up the embroidery I gave up on during the summertime, when I had the time to spare. The money I made selling flowers would be used for the approaching autumn festival.

It wasn't that I didn't miss him, but that there was no use thinking about it. All a person had to do was look at his eyes to know that he belonged to Karin. It was almost too easy to see that he wanted nothing more than to stay by her side and protect her through thick and thin.

He had no room left for anyone else.

* * *

I had saved some of the better-looking chrysanthemums for Karin. When father's harvest finally wound down, I picked half a basket for her and brought it to her okiya. I arrived at the hanamachi in the early morning on purpose, for I did not want to meet him by accident.

Karin's eyes were focused on some place far away. She stared into space, lost in her thoughts. She was unusually quiet and didn't talk much.

I left the okiya after leaving her the flowers, and saw him standing by the bridge, looking lost as he gazed up at Karin's window, his face unreadable but his eyes fervent.

I knew how it felt, to have the one person you want more than anything in the world so unreachable. It was, after all, how he felt to me.

I went up to speak to him.

Indeed he was lost. His father had held a high position at the Emperor's court, and with a rival's manipulations, his family had lost all their titles. His father died soon after the incident and the rest of his clan scattered to save themselves. The Mother of the okiya, seeing that he had neither money nor power anymore, had forbid Karin from seeing him. He had been selling the valuables he still carried as a living, trying to stay in the hanamachi in hopes of seeing her again.

His level of devotion surprised me.

He needed to find a place to stay before he turned into a beggar on the street. But the beggars in the hanamachi had their own groups and cliques, so even if he was willing he wouldn't be able to stay. It was also impossible for him to go home, for even if he sold all the valuable goods he still possessed, he wouldn't be able to afford even the food required for the journey alone. I searched my mind for any way to help him without seeming to force it onto him. He could stay at my place; our neighbourhood sensei recently left and we needed one to teach the children at school.

"Our community still needs a sensei to teach the children, Hitsugaya-san. You can probably teach at the school and then study and revise for the Imperial Entrance Exams."

His eyes widened with interest and his brows furrowed as he considered my words.

I thought he would say no to me, but after a moment, he nodded his agreement and thanked me for my kindness. Later, I managed to convince Father to let him stay with us, temporarily. The previous sensei, Shitakawa-san, stayed at our place, so it did not take much effort to convince him to do the same. He settled in the room across from mine.

* * *

I visited the hanamachi often, acting as the messenger between them, passing letters from him to her and her to him. When I tucked the letters into my obi, I was often tempted to open them and see what was written. They probably thought I couldn't read, for the envelopes were never sealed.

I could never bring myself to open the letters. The words of love and affection inside were not meant for my eyes, even though I was dying to know what he said to the one he loved. I wished those words were for me. Karin would have known how to respond. I wanted to read how a beautiful and intelligent woman such as Karin would respond.

The okiya was busy with the approaching New Year, and I was barred from the entrance several times. Only after bribing the maids did I find out that Karin refused to see anyone. The Mother was furious when she discovered their secret correspondence and I was not to come anymore.

He was at a loss for words when he heard the news, and then he walked out of the house and into the nearby woods. I did not follow, even though I was sick with worry when he did not come back when night fell.

To my relief, he returned the next day, his eyes determined and cold when he told me that he was going to study hard for the Entrance Exam and secure a high position at court.

There was nothing I could do to help him but to go to the hanamachi and find out more information about Karin and then embroider non-stop.

We spent hours together: him studying, me embroidering. His hands were smooth and sure as they moved his brush across the paper, marking the pale surface black with ink. My own hands, calloused from gardening, did the same to the fabric on my lap. His tools were his brush and ink, mine were a needle and thread. Our products could not have been more different, but I could not help but feel the impossible distance between us narrowing ever so slightly.

My embroidery was famous around the area, so after my handiwork had accumulated, shops from the hanamachi would send clerks to buy them.

Handkerchiefs, obi, ribbons, cloaks, purses, and even marriage kimonos, fans and silk screens- I could embroider elegant, realistic designs onto them according to the buyer's wishes.

As Hitsugaya's exams approached, I received a strange order. Bed covers. It was my first time embroidering such a piece. The customer wanted me to sew lilies onto the silk. I had stared at the red cloth, speechless at the daunting task at hand. This kind of material was good with gold threads, but sewing flowers would require green leaves to match. It would be difficult to coordinate the colours. I asked him if I could use another design.

The customer was a bridegroom-to-be; the covers were a present for his future wife.

"Hinamori-san, these covers are for my bride. Her name has the word _yuri_, lily, in it; I would be very much obliged if you can put extra effort into the piece."

I felt my heart tug. How many hours had I walked between my village and Karin's, delivering letters between the two separated lovers? My hands had carried the slips of paper, my eyes never reading their careful words. Now my hands held cloth, they held a present from a husband to his wife. I knew Hitsugaya and Karin's story, I did not know theirs but I was to be a part of it as well. I hid a wry smile and looked up at him.

"I can make them," I said, "I would be honored to work with this design. I hope that the finished product will be satisfactory for your bride."

He thanked me and left me to the task. The bedcovers took longer than anything I had embroidered before. As I worked, the lilies and leaves took form, as did the butterflies I added to the design.

* * *

The piece took an unusually long amount of time. My house was small and Hitsugaya and I worked in the same room. Every so often, I would feel his eyes on me. More often than not, I ducked my head and concentrated on my work, waiting until I no longer felt his gaze on me. Usually we kept the silence between us.

"Your embroidery is so beautiful, it's like a painting," he once remarked to me.

"I envy the person who's to receive this gift," I admitted, before my eyes widened at my words.

"Why, when you can sew one for yourself?" he asked, his eyes glinting with amusement and the light from the lamp.

"But someone ordered it for his beloved bride, it's different."

He was silent. His eyes went back to the paper as his hand began to move smoothly across the surface. My needle resumed its work as well. After a long while he spoke, not looking up, "There'll be a day when you will be in that position too. When that time comes, you'll sew yourself a cover just like this."

When he turned around, I heard him whisper to himself, very quietly, "If only I can give Karin a gift like this."

The embroidery needle suddenly pierced my finger. I thought to myself, "I will not sew something like this just for me; it takes too much time and effort."

* * *

Time flew into late spring-early summer. The jasmine buds were heavy on the branches, ready to blossom into flowers.

The news from the okiya made his customary frown even deeper – Karin still wouldn't see anyone and her health had declined due to her refusal to eat most of her meals. Her Mother had decided to marry her off for a hefty sum while she was still famed as one of the best geisha in the Gion.

It was good news, but the amount the Mother asked for gave us a headache. She said she would not let Karin go without at least 2,000,000 yen.

I didn't have even a tenth of that amount and father's savings was only about 330,000 yen. All Hitsugaya possessed was his earnings as the neighbourhood sensei. Even if we borrowed from our friends and acquaintances, we'd still be short.

By a lot.

Besides, how were we supposed to pay them back if we did borrow money?

He looked surprisingly calm, despite that perpetual frown. I did notice, however, how restless he became, and the almost frantic glint in those teal eyes.

One night, Father pulled me aside and questioned me, "Momo, tell Otou-san the truth. Do you like the Hitsugaya kid?"

I flushed and dropped my gaze, feeling like a guilty child caught doing something forbidden, "How can I not? But he only likes Karin."

"Momo, you are my only daughter, my only child," he shook his head. "When you brought Hitsugaya-san here I thought that you liked him and wanted to marry him. He may be penniless, but he's a good man, so I let him stay. Now I understand; you're not the girl in his heart. Even so, do you still want to help him? Have you ever thought that if you do help him, you wouldn't be able to count on him anymore?"

Something hot in my eyes wanted to rush out, but I still smiled calmly.

"I know, Otou-san, I knew from the very beginning. But I can't help it; I just have to help him. Besides, I like Karin- she's very kind, you'll know if you meet her. She's different and beautiful and smart and she's good at everything. Otou-san, help me free Karin and let her live with us. She'll be like my sister, and you'll have another daughter and a son-in-law. Please, Otou-san."

Father looked at me and sighed, "Alright, you can do what you need to do."

I jumped at him and hugged him tight, tears rolling down my face like crystals, dropping onto the rough fabric of Father's kimono.

* * *

We sold the flower garden and some of Father's land. We had to borrow a lot of money, and then I sold my old incense burner for forty-five hundred yen.

The antique shop owner kept on saying he'd wouldn't get any profit from the burner and the price was too high; but his eyes glittered in exultation. The burner was an antique from the Kamakura period; it was used in the Emperor's palace and then was lost during the war.

I left the antique shop with two million yen collected and headed straight to the okiya.

When the Mother finally understood my intentions for coming, she made a show of dramatic regret and sorrow. "Why didn't you come earlier?" she exclaimed, "Two days ago a high official from the court was very taken with Karin and offered three million yen. What could I have done but to accept? Karin would do very well as his mistress."

* * *

He did not speak and just stared at me for a long time, and then he forced out, "Thank you, buy the land back and we can repay your friends."

After settling the debts and buying our land, there was no more money left to retrieve the silver incense burner.

Father let it go, saying that the thing was useless anyways.

But Hitsugaya got the name of the shop from me and declared, "I'll buy it back for you, I promise."

* * *

I still stood by the Hanamachi Bridge during the summer, selling flowers. The leftovers were dried and then sold to the spice and perfume shop for extra income.

Karin's window, the one that faced the bridge, never opened. She was not there anymore, and I couldn't find out where she went.

As summer passed by, he started to prepare to go to the Imperial Entrance Exams in Tokyo. I gave him the money I made selling my embroidery and flowers. There was only about 80,000 yen, but he smiled and assured me that it was much more than necessary.

"Stop smiling. I would rather you don't smile. I know you're not happy."

His deep, teal eyes gazed at me, and then he took my hands and held them in his own. His were warm but mine were clammy.

"I know how much you've done for me, I know how incredibly kind and selfless you are. I know; I know everything. If I do well in the examination and get appointed, will you marry me?"

His words struck me dumb like a bolt of lightning.

"What in the world are you talking about? If you get appointed, go find Karin and bring her back!" The words were so difficult to say, but I forced them out anyways. "If you don't get appointed, come back and Father and I will help you. If you do find Karin, I'll sew the bedcovers for you and you can marry her."

He shook his head slowly, "If I can't find her, will you marry me?"

I considered it long and hard, and finally nodded, though I couldn't say why my heart ached instead of feeling light, and I knew my face did not look like I imagined the bridegroom's bride did.

* * *

He placed second in the overall scores and stayed in Tokyo for his appointment. Some time later, he sent a messenger back with even better news. He was appointed as a high court official and his wife was to share his titles.

I felt as if someone poured a bucket of cold water down my head. He married while in Tokyo!?

Father grinned at me and pulled out a wedding invitation. "Hitsugaya-sama gave this to me before he left, and said that he's going to marry you. Otou-san said yes for you."

I focused my eyes on the elegant script on the thick paper. The name with the honorific attached … it was my name. Happiness, sorrow, and many other emotions I couldn't name bubbled to the surface, mingling together until I was numb.

So he never found Karin after all.

* * *

His engagement present was the silver incense burner, bought at a cost of five times the price I had sold it for. He also wanted to bring my family to Tokyo. To live.

Both Father and I were attached to our home, but there was no other choice. Father sold our house and land and planned to buy some property in the outskirts of Tokyo after we arrived.

I did not agree with his idea, but then he reprimanded me, "Don't you understand? Hitsugaya-sama is now a high court official. There will be rules you have to follow. It's not acceptable for the father-in-law to live with his daughter after she's married. People will talk."

I jumped as the realization sank in. Father's words were true; he was as different from me as the sun is to the earth. He was born into a noble family, the youngest court official in a century, and with a brilliant future ahead of him. I was just a flower vendor in the hanamachi.

Even if you ignored our difference in upbringing, I still couldn't match him the way Karin did.

I couldn't paint or write poems. Karin could.

I couldn't play an instrument or sing for him. Karin could.

I may have understood his poems, but I could only ready his brush and paper.

I may have understood his music, but I could only make him tea and clean his instrument.

And all these things an ordinary maid could do.

He didn't love me; he just wanted to repay my kindness.

My heart chilled and I lost all interest in sewing my wedding kimono. Father had to hurry me into finishing the embroidery and I didn't have the heart to argue.

* * *

As the date approached, he brought the headdress to me and asked me in jest, "Did you sew yourself bedcovers?"

I blushed and showed him the things I had finished. Tablecloths, cushions, pillows, the bed sheet set, and the wedding kimono, all made from the finest silk I can find.

He gazed at them, looking entranced as his long fingers ran over the embroidery as though he was afraid of damaging it.

"So, your wish did come true," he remarked.

And I was suddenly reminded of his words: _"If only I can give Karin a gift like this."_

Was he trying to say his wish hadn't come true yet?

* * *

Today was the big day.

I put on my kimono, put up my hair and the headdress. The maids around me kept on complimenting me and my kimono, but I could clearly see the reflection in the mirror wearing the wedding regalia had no smile on her face.

* * *

After the ceremony, I stepped onto the wedding carriage. He rode at the head of the procession. We were going to the place he had been staying at while in the Gion. We were going to pack our belongings and get everything settled here before leaving for Tokyo.

Right before leaving the outskirt of the hanamachi, my carriage was stopped by a sudden commotion and agitation of the crowd outside. I pushed the curtain on the side of the carriage away for a look.

The procession was blocked by a smaller carriage. The Mother of the okiya followed it, looking jubilant.

The men tilted the carriage so its occupant could get out. A figure stepped forth and straightened.

It was Karin.

She was looked wane and thin, but even after all this time, the qualities she possessed were unchanged.

She was still his Karin.

He dismounted and walked rapidly towards her.

I let my hand slide away from the curtain, but even so, his voice, hoarse with emotions, pushed through the woven barrier, "Karin… Karin…"

Letting out the breath I had held on to, I calmly took off the headdress and kimono. They were not mine, they rightfully belonged to her. I stepped out of the carriage. Everyone was paying attention to his reunion with Karin; no one noticed me.

Father looked like he had been struck; I tugged at his sleeve. "Otou-san, it's time to go."

* * *

Soon after, a new narrative captivated the hanamachi; once upon a time, a family of noble birth was wronged and torn apart by an enemy clan. The youngest son left home to find help. In his journeys, he met a talented and beautiful geisha. They fell in love, but were torn apart by her Mother. The young man worked and studied hard, acing the Imperial Entrance Exams and was appointed by the Emperor himself to his court. His mother was trying to force him to marry the daughter of another noble, but by a lucky twist of fate, he was reunited with his true love.

When I first heard the story, I laughed, but no sound came out. Then I finally understood. In their story, I was only an expendable minor character. Their story was full of harmony, love, and fatefulness, but I was only a third wheel. In this story, the only one that was in the wrong role was me.

The narrative should have ended that way, but small ripples of continuation still carried through.

* * *

I started an embroidery shop, selling my own works while I taught other girls, helping them sell the things they'd sewn as well. Though it was not a large shop, the business was good and I did not have to worry about making ends meet.

When he came in, I was in the back of the shop, working on a pillowcase. I heard someone come in and raised my head to call out, "Would you like to take a look around?"

And then I fell silent. The sun was streaming though the doorway, illuminating his surroundings, but facing the light, I could not read his expression. Would he look surprised, I wondered.

"Hinamori, I tried to find you for the longest time."

I could not help but to laugh. This line had always been for Karin, but now he was saying it to me.

"Why were you looking for me? If you needed embroidery, I've already left you a set. Did Karin not like them?"

"It's not … I'm –" he started, his eyes serious and his mouth set into a determined line.

I raised my hand to stop him. "I understand. You don't love me. You married me for Karin. After your appointment, your family did not want you to married a geisha, but you love Karin and only Karin."

I was surprised at how cool and collected I was. It was almost as though we were strangers, as though I was not the little girl who stood by the bridge selling flowers and he was not the man who stole my heart when he gave me a single blossom out of the bouquet for another woman.

"You didn't want your future wife to make her life difficult, so you chose me. First so you could repay my kindness. That way your mother couldn't talk. Secondly, I have always been friendly with Karin, so I wouldn't mistreat her. When you came here to marry me, you also got the Mother to try and get Karin back so you can bring her back to Tokyo with us, and your family would not have been able to do anything about it. The only thing that threw it all off was that you didn't anticipate the Mother would bring Karin back the day of the wedding. You're under the impression that I left because I was angry with you, right?"

"Hinamori, I…" he began once more, trying to going back to whatever he had been trying to tell me before.

I interrupted him, something that seemed to surprise us both. I saw his eyes widened, and somewhere within myself, a part of me that was still rational and careful wondered if it was surprise from my rudeness, or if it was anger? But the rest of me had thrown caution to the winds. I didn't know, but I couldn't be silent. Not anymore.

"I left, not because I was angry, but because I was happy. I'm glad that I fell in love with someone who is honorable and kind. You understand, don't you? The only thing that lied between Karin and her happiness was me. I was in the way. By leaving, I took myself out of the picture and both you and Karin are free to find happiness. As for me, you can still easily find an excuse to explain my disappearance, you can say I died." But for all my strength my next words were quiet, "I won't go with you."

For a second, those teal eyes glinted. He had changed during those months, he no longer bothered to hide the sharpness of his personality, and now it hit me forcefully.

Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I continued, "Did you know, I could have obtained the sum the Mother asked for in a day's time?

Seeing his shocked countenance and the flint-like eyes grow dim, I smiled sadly.

"There was a piece of incense in the silver burner I sold, called the "Unna'. It was made specifically for the Emperor and was extremely difficult to make. The art of making it is lost now, so it is rare and priceless," I explained to him. "It is hard like metal, and is difficult to light. You would have to burn it with charcoal for seven days and seven nights. Once lit, it is impossible to distinguish the flame as it burns from the inside out. The scent does not come out until the entire piece turns to ash and its essence is saturated into the surroundings.

"It is said that after smelling the Unna's scent, any other fragrance would be nothing compared to it. Had I sold the incense, it would have fetched well over two million yen, but I could not bear to part with it. My Okaa-san gave it to me before she died,"

I looked up at him and forced a smile,

"So you see? You owe me nothing."

* * *

After he left, Father reproached me. "How could you lie? Your Okaa-san only left you the silver burner. Where did the incense come from?"

I smiled slightly.

I had read about the Unna incense and I did have it, but only one piece. I lit it a long time ago. Now I was waiting for it to burn out. Its fragrance was exquisite, and there would never be incense like it, nor would there ever be a fragrance so sweet. It continued to burn quietly, so no one will notice, and no one would ever know what it felt like, and smell that delicious scent.

And no one would ever know how much I loved you.

* * *

FIN

Okay, so Hitsugaya ended up with Karin, but this is still a story about Hinamori and Hitsugaya. After the happy ending of Green Plums, I just couldn't help but to writing a story where the heroine does _not_ end up with her knight in shining armour. I still maintain that I write angst better. Hmm.

Comments and questions and reviews and all that stuff is appreciated, I love it when people tell me that I can work on this and that to make a story better.


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